First bowl of Ramen
by GirlBehindTheBook
Summary: Six year old Naruto wonders the streets at night, when he is approached by a silver haired man in a mask, who buys him his first bowl of ramen...


First bowl of Ramen:-

Naruto shoved his little fists into the pockets of his shorts, the cold wind running through his soft blond hair. He shuddered slightly, if any other six year old were to wonder the streets at the dead of night people would worry, but for Naruto, it was a regular thing. His stomach rumbled painfully reminding him he needed food, but he was out of both money and food. He had attempted to scavenge bins, to see if anybody had left any food, any that he could salvage. He found himself at the peak of his disappointment as he couldn't find any. The streets of Konoha seemed frightening at first sight, but Naruto knew the streets well, and had nothing to fear. Every now and then he would pass a window with nothing but a soft glow emanating from inside, but didn't bother to knock the door, he would only be shunned again. All food places were closed so he had no luck finding anywhere, but turning back wasn't an option.

A few hours had passed and still no salvation, he wanted to give in, but something inside Naruto told him to keep going. The night was growing colder and he could see things moving in the shadows, but thought he was just imagining things.

"Yo." The voice was slightly deep, easy going even causing Naruto to jump and whirl round. His blue eyes wide with fear. The man, or what he thought was a man, was tall and lean. His silver hair sticking up slightly, a mask, that was a cat or a fox, he couldn't tell, hid his face. The black and white uniform was unfamiliar to him. Naruto stumbled back, to surprised to speak.

"What are you doing out so late?" The masked person questioned Naruto, looking down at the boy that just reached his knees. Naruto looked around wildly, trying to find a weapon, maybe a way to escape. Naruto took in a deep breath, trying to act brave.

"Getting food." He stated bluntly, but his voice shook slightly, rising a little higher in pitch. The masked man cocked his head to the right, his silver hair falling slightly.

"Food? Where are your parents?" Even for the silver haired man this was something new, he hadn't seen this since the war.

"I don't have any." The little boy muttered, looking down at his small feet, shivering slightly at the cold. The man behind the mask jumped when he heard the rumbling of the child's stomach.

"Are you hungry?" The man asked, looking the boy up and down curiously. Naruto nodded, it had been a day or two since he had eaten properly and now he was desperate for anything, even the smallest scrap of food. The man behind the mask nodded, he couldn't let the child starve.

"Come one then, I'll take you to get something to eat. Do you like Ramen?" The man asked Naruto, at first enjoying the slight surprise on his young face but then the look of confusion. Naruto shrugged before he answered, looking up at the mask.

"What's ramen?" He asked curiously, the man grinned behind his mask, so he had never had ramen before? This would be fun to see. He held out his hand, covered in black leather, claw like rubber sticking from the fingertips.

"Come on then, I'll take you to get some." Naruto grinned and clasped onto the mans hand with his small one. Excitement racing inside of him at the idea of having food.

Naruto stared down at the piping hot bowl, the smell of the ramen filling his nostrils. The man next to him had his own bowl and had moved the mask slightly to show only his lips, he eat the ramen slowly, and Naruto watched.

"Go on, eat up." Naruto looked back at the man behind the counter. The owner he thought. Naruto nodded before taking his first try, a grin spread across his face, his eyes alight with joy. This, to him, was the best food he had ever tasted. He began to wolf it down, finishing it a lot quicker than the grown man beside him. Although he wanted more, he was to scared to ask, so he sat and stared at the empty bowl, the man beside him waited for the man behind the counter to turn his back before he quickly swapped the bowls.

"Come on, it's good, you should eat it up or Teuchi-san will be angry." Naruto looked up at the man who smiled kindly and ordered another two bowls, allowing Naruto to finish his first. To Naruto this kindness was something new, a person was not cruel to him, but nice and kind. Naruto looked looked up at the man curiously before looking back down at his second empty bowl.

"Onee-san?" Naruto questioned, startling the masked man yet again, Naruto widened his eyes at the mans reaction and quickly muttered an apology, in which the man waved away, smiling at him slightly to show it was okay.

"What is it?" He asked the still guilty looking Naruto. The boy kept looking at his bowl, empty of any food contents.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" It was a simple question but not one the man thought he would ever hear again, the man shrugged as he mulled over the question.

"Why shouldn't I be?" To this Naruto shook his head, he thought the answer was obvious as everyone else had been so cruel to him. But surely this man would already know who he was, and automatically be cruel.

"Because everyone else it." Naruto muttered, looking up at the man and back down. He jumped slightly when he saw the mans clawed pinky being held out to him. The black of the glove shining in the soft light of the stand.

"Let's make a promise, I'll always be nice to you if you always take care of yourself, and eat lots of ramen." To that Naruto grinned, wrapping his small pinky around the much larger one, shaking it. His whiskered cheeks blushing in excitement.

A few years later Naruto met the masked man again, he just didn't know it. And Kakashi Hatake made sure to keep the memories with Naruto a secret, as they had both kept their promises to each other.


End file.
